One known practice in fabricating wire markers is to form a wire marker sleeve from a continuous length of extruded plastic tubing and to cut the sleeve into markers of desired length. The markers are supplied to the end user either with preprinting of desired information or in blank for printing by the user. In the latter case, the individual markers are provided in assembly with a marker holding device which supports the markers for imprinting.
One type of assembly of markers and a holding device is shown in commonly-assigned U.S. Pat. No. 4,586,610. The markers are extruded elongate cylinders and the holding device comprises a flat planar member having a plurality of openings through the planar surfaces, the openings being arranged in pairs at opposite sides of the planar member, which defines tabs which extend into ends of markers and releasably retain the markers with the planar member. The assembly may be inserted into a typewriter or other printer for imprinting of the desired wire information on the markers.
Another assembly of markers and holding device is seen in U.S. Pat. No. 4,865,895. Here, the holding device comprises a first carrier strip pair having adhesive on interior faces of the strips and markers are releasably secured to the first carrier strip pair and extend outwardly thereof. A second carrier strip pair is provided at the remote ends of the markers, again having adhesive on interior faces of the strips and accordingly releasably secured to the second carrier strip.
Typically, marker assemblies are encased and, at the user site, are removed from their case, loaded onto a marker spool in a printer and fed into the printer feeding mechanism. From applicants'perspective, this past practice is cumbersome and time consuming. Further, they see presently known holding devices as not assuring high quality imprinting on markers thereby held.